The first tinshop in Colonial America was opened in 1740 when the Patterson brothers, William & Andrew emigrated from Ireland and set up for business in Berlin, CT. They made tin cups, pie pans, milk pails, and different size pots. After their first year, they hired tin peddlers to travel down the East Coast with horse drawn carts loaded with their shiny "poor man's silver".
Early American housewives loved the tinware. It was light, unbreakable, easy to clean and cheap. The tinplate was imported from England where it was made of sheet iron that had been dipped in molten tin and run through rollers to create a flat sheet approx. 2 feet square.
Today's tinplate is steel electro-plated with a tin coating.
